Inupiaq Storyteller next Native American Philosophies Speaker

June 17, 2009

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Storyteller and actor Ishmael Hope (Inupiaq/Tlingit) will perform traditional stories and speak about storytelling at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 18, in Gilfillan Hall at Oregon State University.

His performance is part of the Native American Philosophies class and lectures, a series of Wednesday evening events that bring distinguished Native American writers, performers and political leaders to OSU.

Hope, whose Inupiaq name is Analook and whose Tlingit name is Kaa Kwaask’, is of the Kiks.adi clan, of the Point House in Sitka, Alaska. He is a well-known storyteller in Alaska, where he directs outreach activities for the Perseverance Theatre in Juneau. He is the founder of an annual festival called “Beyond Heritage,” which is a celebration of contemporary and traditional Alaskan Native culture.

Most recently, Hope performed in a production of “Macbeth” that was performed at the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. He also recently wrote his first comic book, “Strong Man.”

“I had the honor of seeing Ishmael perform in Tenakee Springs, Alaska and he is extraordinary,” said Kathleen Dean Moore, an OSU distinguished professor of philosophy who, along with OSU ethnic studies professor Kurt Peters, is one of the organizers of the project.

The lecture is free and open to the public, although not designed for children.

Native American Philosophies is sponsored by the Spring Creek Project for Ideas, Nature, and the Written Word; the Ethnic Studies Department; the Philosophy Department; the Native American Collaborative Institute; the Hundere Endowment for Religion and Culture; and the USDA Forest Service.

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